Hornets Bunker Down to Repel Comets

by noelrr
08/06/2012

The Waratah Championship League (WCL) action returns to the Hills Basketball Stadium at 5pm on Saturday June 16, with the seventh-placed Hills District Hornets senior men hosting the fourth-placed Sydney City Comets in Round Eleven of the competition. The Comets defeated the Hornets 92-71 in the first encounter between these two teams this season, back in Round Six, with the guards on both sides turning the game into a “shooting free-for-all”.

Josh Chapman (26 points), Jason Strong (20) and Emils Duselis (15) were all in great form for the Hornets but could not carry their team to victory on the day, with Michael Seckold (31), former Sydney Kings NBL guard Stephen Whitehead (19) and Blake Borgia (13) matching their efforts and the Comets bench players providing the greater back-up support on the day.

Much has changed for the Hornets since that game, with former junior Paul Brotherson arriving back home from College in the United States and making an immediate impact upon his return, averaging 27 points and 9 boards per game.

Brotherson has given the Hornets a more formidable presence on court and his match-up against a number of Comets players on Saturday night promises to be a highlight of the game.

Whilst the Comets destroyed the Hornets from the perimeter in their first encounter, their two big-men (Tom Dawson and Ufojan Isbicer) have both run into form as the season unfolds and are now contributing double digit points and rebounds every game.

The increased output from the Comets centre duo could be an Achilles Heel for the Hornets on Saturday night, as Hills District centres David Pollard (2 games) and Stephen Rafty (1 game) have both succumbed to injury and are unlikely to suit up on Saturday night.

Back-up centre Richard Clark has in the meantime become a ‘go-to’ player for the Hornets in the paint and with Strong and Chapman both contributing strongly on the boards, has been able to admirably fill the large gap left by the absence of both Pollard and Rafty.

There are also be two Youth League games being played on Saturday, with the third-placed Hornets men playing the sixth-placed Comets in the main preliminary game at 3pm, whilst the fifth-placed Hornets women play the first-placed Lady Comets on an adjoining court to the WCL game - also at 5pm.

PHOTO: David Hayman scores against the Panthers - photo by Noel Rowsell

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